It is clear that concern for the preservation of the environment is growing. The IC industry is reputed to be a clean one, and the introduction of electronic systems has played a pivotal role in developing technologies that help to protect the environment. However, it must also be realized that the electronic industry consumes huge amounts of energy, chemicals, technical gases and even water. This book provides an overview of the available scientific information on environmentally benign IC production. A broad range of topics is addressed including work on resource reduction for chemicals, gases and DI water, reuse or recycling of chemicals, waste treatment strategies, environmentally friendly alternative technologies and analytical technologies for environmental studies. Undoubtedly, environmental concerns are leading to drastic changes in state-of-the-art processing, and new technologies are emerging from the strive towards lowering the environmental impact of the IC industry.
The field of magnetic ultrathin films continues to be an exciting and rapidly expanding one, as demonstrated by recent advances in giant magnetoresistance (GMR), exchange-coupled structures, and magnetic anisotropies. New GMR materials, such as Mn perovskites, have been developed, and new effects, such as exchange coupling through semiconducting interlayers, non-Heisenberg-type coupling, perpendicular GMR, and hot electron spin-valve effects, have been discovered. This book from MRS offers an international perspective on the expanding activity, and features developments in both fundamental and applied areas. Topics include: novel magnetic nanostructures and applications; growth, structure and interfaces; interlayer coupling; magnetic anisotropy; ultrathin films, magnetic domains; giant magnetoresistance; colossal magnetoresistance; spectroscopies, magneto-optical properties and granular nanostructures.
